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Obama ads chart new in-game territory

Devlin Barrett, Washington

FOR those too busy playing video games to watch presidential ads on television, Barack Obama has a solution. He has become the first presidential candidate to buy ad space inside a game.

Nine video games from Electronic Arts, ranging from the popular Madden 09 football game to the street-racing Burnout: Paradise, feature in-game ads from the Obama campaign. The ads  they appear on billboards

and other signs  plug a campaign website and remind players that early voting has begun.

The idea of putting advertising temporarily inside a video game began about 18 months ago, and Senator Obama is the first presidential candidate to buy space, company officials said.

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The Democrat's ads are aimed at gamers who like sports, including car racing, basketball, ice hockey and skateboarding.

EA Sports spokeswoman Holly Rockwood did not say how much the ads cost but revealed they were running on the Xbox Live versions of the game until November 3  the day before the presidential election. They began earlier this month.

The Xbox 360 console connects to the internet, so it can be updated with new features, including ads.

The timing of the Obama ads within video games varies between states. Players in smaller states may see the ads for the whole month, while users in bigger states may see them for a shorter period.